Natural forests show stronger carbon sink resistance to extreme drought than plantations in Northeast China
Date:2026-05-23 clicks:
Impact Factor:5.7
DOI number:10.1016/j.agrformet.2026.111266
Affiliation of Author(s):东北林业大学
Journal:Agricultural and Forest Meteorology(Q1)
Place of Publication:荷兰（阿姆斯特丹）
Key Words:Natural forests; Plantations; Carbon sink; Extreme drought; Resistance; Northeast China
Abstract:Despite China’s expanding planted forest area, the climate resilience and long-term carbon sink stability of these ecosystems relative to natural forests remain poorly understood under intensifying climate change. Using remote sensing and meteorological data (2000–2022), we systematically assessed spatiotemporal dynamics, climatic sensitivity, drought resistance, and stability of carbon sinks in planted versus natural forests across Northeast China. Forest net ecosystem productivity (NEP) in Northeast China has increased over the past 20 years, but the rate of increase differs significantly between planted and natural forests. Planted forests show a larger NEP gain than natural forests in the Daxing’an (DM, planted: 4.38 g C m−2 yr−1; natural: 4.42 g C m−2 yr−1) and Xiaoxing’an (XM, planted: 5.67 g C m−2 yr−1; natural: 5.03 g C m−2 yr−1) Mountains, while natural forests exhibit a greater increase in the Changbai Mountains (CM, planted: 1.63 g C m−2 yr−1; natural: 2.16 g C m−2 yr−1). Mean NEP is higher in planted forests within DM (natural: 410 g C m−2, planted: 413 g C m−2) and XM (natural: 420 g C m−2, planted: 427 g C m−2), whereas the opposite is true for CM (natural: 527 g C m−2, planted: 523 g C m−2), which exhibits a higher overall NEP. Drought resistance and resilience patterns vary regionally between forest types. Natural forests in drier regions (DM, XM) resist extreme drought better but are less resilient to mild drought than plantations. In the wetter CM region, plantations show greater resistance overall. Recovery after drought is also region-specific. Stability analyses further confirm these regional differences. We highlight the need for optimized management to enhance planted forests' carbon sink stability, informed by these precipitation-linked patterns.
Co-author:Xinran Huang,Zhen Zhen,Wenxin Zhao
First Author:Yifan Ding
Indexed by:Journal paper
Correspondence Author:Xiaochun Wang*
Document Code:111266
Discipline:Agriculture
Document Type:J
Volume:387
Page Number:111266
ISSN No.:0168-1923（印刷版）/ 1873-2240（电子版）
Translation or Not:no
Date of Publication:2026-01-01
Included Journals:SCI